five mindfulness trainings pdf

7/30/2019 Five Mindfulness Trainings PDF

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The Five Mindfulness Trainings Ian Prattis

Where did the Mindfulness Trainings come from? They had to come from somewhere.There are three major causes and conditions that permitted their emergence. The first isthe awakened mind of the Buddha; the second is the great skill of the Buddha as a

teacher; the third is Thich Nhat Hanhs insightful rewording of the Five WonderfulPrecepts of the Buddha. In a language that would appeal to the consciousness of the 21st

century, the Buddhas mindfulness trainings were renewed, in tune with modernhistorical, socio-economic and cultural developments. So when we study and penetratedeeply into the mindfulness trainings we touch all three conditions, in particular theawakened mind of the Buddha. At the same time we also touch our potential to besimilarly awakened.

With the Five Mindfulness Trainings the Buddha communicated in a very precise way theethical and moral basis of practice; of how to be with ourselves, with others and with theplanet and society at large. To be in touch with the Buddhas awakened mind enables usto take refuge in the Three Jewels the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha - in a very

deep way. Once we grasp the extraordinary qualities and understand the power of theenergy created by the mindfulness trainings then something deep and very wholesomestirs in our hearts. From this initial experience the seeds of awakening are nurturedwithin store consciousness and distance is created between ourselves and all negativeactions. Taking refuge in this deep manner is the basis of all dharma practice, whichenables the practitioner to transform the energy of past negativity and step onto the pathof liberation and create no further harm.

Contrast this understanding of taking refuge in the Buddha with the current mindset ofthe politicians, corporate executives and terrorists making the decisions that shape ourworld. They do not have awakened minds. Their minds are scarred, filled with

ignorance, greed and vengeance, their hearts held hostage to corporate, ideological andelectoral agendas. They all follow the same script, seeking similar justifications toadvocate the use of violence. Trapped in history they offer no means of re-creating ourworld. The Buddha does, as his mindfulness trainings provide a different road map forpeace, a different view of politics, conflict resolution and planetary care. Theimplications of the Buddhas teachings apply fully to the aftermath of 9/11. Our worldneeds guidelines like these to live by. Embracing the Buddhas awakened mind in thetrainings is taking refuge in the Buddha. Extending it to our society and environment isthe foundation of Engaged Buddhism.

Taking refuge allows us to transport our everyday reality with its disasters, joys, ups and

downs, into the loving embrace of teachers such as the Buddha. Their teachings provideinstruments for practitioners to travel from the Historical dimension of daily life and berefreshed by touching deeply the Ultimate dimension of the awakened mind of theBuddha and other fully enlightened beings. Such awakened teachers are able to reflectthe Ultimate dimension of Nirvana, the Kingdom of God, The Pure Land, yet they alsorefer to the Historical dimension of the everyday realities of their times and culture.


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Taking refuge in the Dharma, practices, sutras and trainings brings to mind the pivotalexchange between Ananda and the Buddha. As the Buddha was preparing for his bodilydeath his faithful attendant Ananda put a number of questions to the Buddha on behalf ofthe monastic community. The Buddha had repeatedly encouraged his disciples not totake refuge in the person of the Buddha, but in the island of mindfulness within the self

where the diligent practice of the mindfulness trainings would reveal their Buddha nature.Still Ananda had to ask: Who will our teacher be when you are gone? to which theBuddha replied The Mindfulness Trainings, adding They are your teacher even while Iam alive.

Taking refuge in the Sangha brings the Buddha and the Dharma to life. Without theSangha the Buddha and Dharma cannot evolve to be relevant to the suffering of ourtimes, which is quite different from the times of the Buddha. In the latter part of hisministry the Buddha took great care to reconstitute himself in terms of the sangha, so thatif you wanted to truly touch the Buddha and Dharma you had to do so in the Sangha.Thich Nhat Hanh has repeatedly referred to sangha building as the noblest profession inthe 21st century and in his dialogue with Daniel Berrigan in The Raft Is Not The Shore

they talk about sanghas as communities of resistance to all that is unmindful. This insightis vital for the new century and may provide one answer to the present political landscapein America, in that building inclusive sanghas right across America may provide aninstrument for constructive dialogue, intelligent dissent and resistance to initiatives thatfly in the face of the mindfulness trainings. For the trainings allow us to remain steady,lucid and compassionate in the midst of adversity. Yet I personally encounter obstacleswithin myself. Across North America there are many instances of children being abusedand murdered at the hands of parents and guardians. This deeply distresses me.Teenagers volunteering as suicide bombers in the Middle East could well leave mestunned. If I did not have my practice to stay steady and look deeply, I could easily beoverwhelmed. But I do have my practice of meditation, and I do take refuge in the Five

Mindfulness Trainings on a daily basis. I am convinced more than ever before that theworld needs a universal code of ethics. The Five Mindfulness Trainings fill this void.For me they are a guide and protector in moments of doubt, so that I see clearly and cantake care of my own internal garbage.

This is the only way to deal with the potential terrorist that lurks deep within everyonesconsciousness. To unravel the insidious internal knots caused by generations of ancestralhabits, created from ignorance, vengeance and separation this is the work of the newrevolutionary of the 21st century, transforming terror and violence first within themselvesand then within the world. It is not a political or intellectual exercise, nor a matter ofcompromised treaties or ceasefires. It is an internal transformation of consciousness at

the very core of our being. It takes mindfulness to do this and the Five MindfulnessTrainings provide the starting gate, a guidance system and a deep well of internal ethicsto live by. This is why I do my very best to live by these trainings.

There is an energy to the trainings that comes directly from the awakened mind of theBuddha, which is continued through us. So that when a sangha collectively anddiligently practices the five mindfulness trainings, an extraordinary energy emerges thatuplifts everyone who is suffering. When I think about taking refuge in the Sangha I smile

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with quiet joy. My home sangha - the Pine Gate sangha founded in 1997 - has matured sothat it operates very much as an organism. There are so many leaders in the sanghachoosing to walk the Bodhisattva path and be of support to everyone else. We take oneanothers hand and willingly walk together through the early part of the twenty firstcentury. From our engaged practice in the city of Ottawa for peace, the environment and

schools there emerges so much confidence and clarity. The experience of the fruits ofpractice transforms our wider community as we become more skilful and aware that we areinfusing mindfulness throughout our city. We have that lucidity and confidence as aconsequence of the joy that emerges from experiencing for ourselves the fruits ofmindfulness practice. They are all spiritual friends kalyanamitra and they help megrow in awareness so that I may become more embedded in my true nature by takingrefuge in the awakened aspect of my mind. The Buddhas reply to Anandas question is nolonger a theory but a reality for sangha members.

Taking Refuge in the trainings and three jewels is a joyful path. A vital part of the joy isengaged practice with a sangha, as that leads to new leadership, responsibility and care forthe wider community. It is in the Sangha that the Ultimate dimension of the Buddha and

Dharma truly comes alive, as the feedback is from direct experience with dharma friends.As sangha members feel the fruits of practice from taking refuge, their awareness grows astheir suffering is transformed. The sangha becomes a safe haven, a community ofresistance where participants are free to explore deeply the Buddha, Dharma and Sanghathat is within. Using breath consciously, living the mindfulness trainings fully, practicingthe guidance of the sutras enables the awakened mind of the Buddha within us to betouched. And so we transform. At this instant the existential realities of the sangha in theHistorical dimension, by creating a Pure Land for transformation, cross over into theUltimate dimension. The waves recognize that they are water. This is not a concept but areality based on the experience of sangha practice. This is why I believe it will be sanghascreating Pure Lands that provide the basis for the next Buddha to manifest, with each

sangha operating organically as a cell in the new manifestation of Divinity on Earth. Thisis a statement of practice and is our greatest gift. We can offer our teacher, Thich NhatHanh, gifts of great wealth or of property for monasteries and centres, but these gifts palebeside the gift of offering to our teacher our deep practice of the mindfulness trainings.This enables us to live authentic lives and be free, at the same time ensuring that a future ispossible. There are many ways to talk about the Five Mindfulness Trainings. They can beapplied to personal spiritual growth, global ecology, the post 9/11 world and so on. Witheach focus we rest in the awakened mind of the Buddha, which is also there within eachone of us. Our practice and actualization of the mindfulness trainings in daily life definesus as true revolutionaries for the 21st century for we can transform both global terror andenvironmental degradation.

Thich Nhat Hanh does not see a way out for our modern civilization other than practicingthe Five Mindfulness Trainings or something like them. The trainings are not there forus to be in judgement of others, to bludgeon people with a misplaced self-righteousness.They are an internal compass to the heart of every individual, so that we wake up to loveand compassion, and take heed of the directions in which the Mindfulness Trainingsguide us. Practicing the trainings with an open heart strengthens and develops ourcompassion and loving kindness, and builds our awareness of interconnectedness as we

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move in the direction of the trainings intention. Practicing the trainings nourishesboddhicitta, the Mind of Love. Thich Nhat Hanh refers to their practice as themedicine for our times, as the hope for the future. They provide protection and enable usto distinguish that which is good for ourselves, our minds and world and that which isnot. It is not necessary to be perfect in the practice that is not possible. But it is

possible to move in the direction of responsible and ethical living and make a differenceto our society and environment. By doing this, then we can transform global terror andenvironmental degradation. We created the present situation, yet there is a clear way oftransforming our creation. If there is this, the actualization of the Five MindfulnessTrainings, then there is that, a balanced and peaceful world.

Ian Prattis is a Dharmacharya in the Engaged Buddhist tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh.He gives talks and retreats in Europe, India, North and South America and is the authorof The Essential Spiral: Ecology and Consciousness After 9/11. Ian is the residentteacher at Pine Gate Sangha in the west end of Ottawa.www.ianprattis.com/pinegate.htm

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